1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to biological testing and diagnostic devices and methods.
2. Description of the Related Art
Approximately 6.1 million people, most of them living in tropical, third-world countries, died of preventable, curable diseases in 1998. One of the factors contributing to these deaths is the lack of adequate diagnostic tools in the field. Developing countries do not have the medical resources to provide adequate lab testing and diagnostic procedures to many of their citizens. As a result, treatable disease often goes undiagnosed, leading to death or other serious complications. In addition, diagnostic tools may be unavailable in more developed countries during emergency situations, such as natural disasters, or during wartime.
Standard systems and methods of culturing samples and pathogens using Petri dishes and similar labwear are well known in the fields of microbiology and pathology. In such standard systems, a substrate (e.g., solid or semi-solid agar) is enclosed in an unsealed container designed to vent moisture and to lessen accidental introduction of contaminating microorganisms. A test sample possibly containing unknown microorganisms to be cultured is introduced into the container under sterile conditions. The container is then turned upside-down and placed into an incubator to control temperature, humidity, and other atmospheric conditions, and microorganisms in the test sample are allowed to grow. The upside-down dish/lid combination releases moisture from the dish, so that the moisture does not generally obscure the lid while viewing and moisture drops do not fall onto the surface of agar, contaminating the culture. Thereafter, the container is usually opened to view and confirm the presence of growing microorganisms. Often, this too must be done under sterile conditions because condensation on the lid of the container inhibits viewing, so the lid is removed to view the grown cultures. Various tests can then be applied to the cultured microorganisms in an attempt to identify them, with these tests often taking a significant amount of time. When the identity of a microorganism has been confirmed, this identity often leads to the selection of suitable medical treatment.